The Global Gaming League (GGL) has secured permission from Atari to feature classic titles such as Centipede, Food Fight and Pong in its first season.
The GGL describes itself as a celebrity-owned competition “structured like the NFL meets WWE”, with four-player rosters competing across multiple genres including sports, fighting, racing, shooter and classic games. Its opening event, branded “SZN Zero”, launched in Las Vegas on 23 August with a match between the teams of musicians T-Pain and Ne-Yo.
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“Atari is the beginning of it all,” said Clinton Sparks, Founder and CEO of the GGL. “There would be no Global Gaming League without Atari – that’s what made me a gamer in the first place. It changed me, entertainment and honestly, what I remember most about my Atari is it brought friends and family together to play – just like our mission is here at The GGL.”
Atari CEO Wade Rosen commented: “It is great to see initiatives like the Global Gaming League celebrating and expanding the visibility of video games in popular culture, and we are excited to have our classic games included in the inaugural season. We look forward to seeing Clinton Spark’s competitive vision play out, and watching the celebrity teams take on these timeless challenges.”
Darin Colucci, Commissioner of the GGL, added: “It’s impossible to overstate the impact Atari had on this medium. To have them participate with the Global Gaming League’s mission to make video game competitions relatable, entertaining and thrilling is a huge endorsement of our vision.”
The GGL says its aim is to merge gaming with wider entertainment culture, including music, sports and fashion, while highlighting competition and rivalry through live events and celebrity-led teams. In August, the company secured deals with publishers including Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft, EA, Bandai Namco, Capcom and The Tetris Company to grant permission for their games to be used in official GGL matches.
